NOTED OHIO ARTIST WINS OHIO WETLANDS STAMP COMPETITION: OH

Article Posted: February 20, 2004

COLUMBUS, OH - The artwork of a drake wood duck by Elyria native Adam Grimm,26, won first place at this year's Ohio Wetlands Habitat Stamp designcompetition, sponsored by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR)Division of Wildlife. Grimm's painting will appear on the Ohio wetlandsstamp for the fall of 2005.The winning entry was selected from a field of 27 original paintingssubmitted by artists in 13 states, including nine entries from Ohio. Thecompetition was held Saturday, February 14 at the annual Ducks Unlimitedconvention in Wilmington, Ohio. "It's great to win in my home state and especially with this species," Grimmsaid.This was Grimm's first win in Ohio in a conservation stamp competition. In1999, he became the youngest artist ever to win the prestigious federal duckstamp competition. He also has won state competitions in Washington in 2001and Alaska in 2000 and 2003. Grimm was the 2004 artist of the year for OhioDucks Unlimited.More than 35,000 wetland stamps are purchased every year, according to theODNR Division of Wildlife. Proceeds from the stamp sales help fund vitalwetland habitat restoration projects in Ohio. Such habitats are important tomany resident wildlife species, including trumpeter swans, wetland birds,and amphibians, as well as numerous migratory species such as ducks,shorebirds and other birds that pass through Ohio each spring and fall. Other Ohioans placed well in the stamp competition. Second place honors wentto Gregory Clair of Bowling Green for his rendering of a mallard. Clair wonthe Ohio competition in 1991. Third place went to Dick Benson of WashingtonCourt House for his portrait of a pair of long-tailed ducks, formerly knownas Oldsquaw. Benson is the 2004 Michigan Ducks Unlimited sponsor artist ofthe year. Semi-finalists included Donnie Hughes of South Carolina, Jeffery Klinefelterof Indiana, and Mark Anderson of South Dakota. Last year's Ohio wetlandsstamp winner, Robert Metropolus of Wisconsin, will see his painting oftundra swans appear on this fall's 2004 wetlands habitat stamp.The judges for this year's event were Fred Zink, champion waterfowl callerand call maker; outdoor writer Jim Morris; outdoor enthusiast Ken Epperley;conservationist Jim Mears; and Dave Linkhart, past president of The OhioFederation of Soil and Water Conservation Districts. Mike Fritz of DucksUnlimited served as an alternate judge.